


A Beta's Duty

by Evilpixie



Category: DCU
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Dystopia, Asexual Character, Discussion of Abortion, Everything is terrible, Explicit Language, M/M, Mpreg, No Sex, Non-Traditional Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Slavery, internalised bigotry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-25
Updated: 2020-03-25
Packaged: 2021-03-01 05:34:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,655
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23309962
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Evilpixie/pseuds/Evilpixie
Summary: The world is divided into two types of people. Betas, and fertiles. Betas control everything, from the industries to the household. Fertiles, made up of alphas and omegas, are just another asset to be bought and sold.Bruce is the beta and master of the household. But he's gone. Everyone says he's dead. Tim doesn't believe it. But he's the only beta left at Wayne Manor so it's up to him to take control of the family.
Relationships: Dick Grayson/Jason Todd, Superbat if you squint really REALLY hard
Comments: 32
Kudos: 261





	A Beta's Duty

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys. I just wanted to quickly say this has nothing to do with my other omegaverse stories. It's not the same world, these are not the same characters, nor is it the same style of writing, so (for those of you who have read my other omegaverse stories) please don't go into this expecting that because I think you'll be disappointed.
> 
> I also just wanted to let you know this story includes internalised/normalised bigotry without aggressively condemning it. The reason for this is I wanted to explore how people would think in this world. Consider this your 11th hour trigger warning.
> 
> That said, I do really hope you enjoy this. It's short, strange, and a little conceptual, but I like it.

“Bruce is dead.”

“No he isn’t.”

“Tim. You have to acce—”

“No, actually, I don’t have to accept anything. I have to save him. That’s what I have to do. And you, you should think about what the hell you’re saying to me before you open your mouth again.”

“Tim,” Dick said again, voice soft and soothing, like Tim was a wild animal that needed to be tamed. It made Tim want to punch him in his stupid perfect face. “It’s been a year. We can’t keep hiding it. People are getting suspicious. We need to declare him dead.”

“Then declare it. I’m not going to stop looking.”

“Tim.”

Why did he keep saying his name like that? Tim wished he would stop and leave him alone to his investigation. He’d made several breakthroughs in the last month. Most of them minor. Some of them major. He knew he was onto something. He just wasn’t sure what yet.

_“Tim,”_ Dick stepped closer to Tim’s worktable. “We need you.”

“Why? You’re Batman. Not me.”

“Batman can’t do this. We need Timothy Drake-Wayne.”

“Why?”

“When Bruce is legally declared dead you need to be there to step forward and claim the inheritance.”

“Why?”

Dick’s voice was quiet. “You know why.”

Because he was the only one who could do it. He was a beta, the only beta in the household, now that Bruce was… gone. Alphas like Dick and omegas like Alfred had no legal right to inherit property. Heck, they _were_ property. They were what Tim would be inheriting, along with the house.

And that felt wrong. Bruce was the master. He was the one that took care of them all. Tim was a beta, sure, but he was also seventeen years old. He couldn’t boss around Dick, Alfred, and—

“If you don’t then Philip Kane will,” Dick said.

He hated that he was talking about this. “He can’t do that. I’m a direct heir.”

“Yes. But if you’re not there when Bruce’s is declared dead and Philip is then they’ll give it to Philip and it will take months, maybe years, of legal battles to get it back.”

It. Dick was saying ‘it’ as if that inheritance didn’t include him.

“Bruce isn’t dead,” Tim said.

“That doesn’t matter.”

“What do you mean it doesn’t matter?”  
  


“It doesn’t matter,” Dick said, still soft and gentle. “What matters is this family. We need to protect ourselves. People are starting to talk. If you’re not the one to declare Bruce dead it’ll look suspicious. It’ll be easy for Philip to say you’re not mentally stable, or to suggest you were involved with Bruce’s disappearance.”

“So?”

“ _So_ you won’t be able to inherit. He wants this house, Tim. You know he does. And you know he’s not afraid to play dirty to get it.”

Tim stared down at the evidence gathered on the table before him. Wavelengths, particles, tissue samples.

“Tim,” Dick said after a while.

“What?”

“We need you to come with us. We need you to declare him dead.”

“He’s not—”

_“Tim.”_

Tim closed his eyes. He knew Dick was right. He knew that. He just… he’d been hoping to find him before it got to this point.

“Fine.”

*

It was a slow painful process. First the police came, then the lawyers, then more police, then more lawyers, then the press. Eventually though they all left and, after an awkward meeting with yet another lawyer, the household was signed over to him. He remembered sitting in the office flipping through papers, each one something that was now his.

He saw floorplans of the house.

He saw Wayne Enterprises and the stock values.

He saw pictures of his family.

“I’m sorry for your loss,” the lawyer said, not sounding at all sorry.

Tim took the papers and left but that phrase followed him around. “I’m sorry for your loss,” said Bruce’s old personal assistant as she showed him his new office. “I’m sorry for your loss,” said a journalist as she tried to get an interview with him walking to his car. “I’m sorry for your loss,” Philip Kane said at a charity gala Dick had forced him to attend.

Tim ignored him and sipped his Coke. There was rum in it. He didn’t used to drink at these events. Technically, he shouldn’t be drinking now. He was still underage. But he was also the richest seventeen year old on the planet so rules like that didn’t really apply to him in the same way.

It didn’t matter. He’d already phoned Alfred. He’d be out of there within the hour and back to the worklab. There was some data he wanted to reanalyse. A new theory he had to explore.

“I can see you’re itching to escape.”

So Philip Kane wasn’t as dumb as he looked.

“So I’ll make this quick. I have a proposition for you.”

“I’m not giving you the house.”

“The house? No, dear boy. Of course not. I wouldn’t ask it of you. Besides, what am I to do with another mansion?”

It was the first thing Philip Kane had ever said that surprised him.

“No, I want Richard.”

And that was the second.

“Why?”

“He’s a fine specimen of an alpha. I have an omega under my care. Is it surprising what I want him for?”

“You want him to breed.” That much was obvious. “But why? I thought you didn’t approve of Bruce adopting children ‘not of the bloodline’. Isn’t that what you said four years ago, at the Wayne Foundation annual ball?”

“Ah. You remember. I’m impressed. You were quite young.”

Tim didn’t say anything. He watched Philip, waited for an answer.

“Let’s just say… I’ve found the silver lining. Because Richard isn’t genetically a Wayne there should be no problems breeding him with a Kane.”

And if the offspring happened to be a beta Philip would have an heir entitled to a claim on the Wayne Estate. It was a long game, but a simple scheme. “You’re not getting him.”

“Oh, don't be so quick to turn down my proposal! You haven't heard it all yet. You see, I know you're rather fond of him. So, what I'm suggesting isn't an outright purchase but a stud rights contract. One off payment. You keep Richard but I keep the offspring.”

“I’m not breeding Dick.”

"Fine. You can have the alpha and the omega offspring. That's a good deal. I'm paying you to get more fertiles. All I want are the betas."

Of course. He only wanted the heirs. "I'm not breeding Dick."

Philip scowled. “Well, what are you doing with him then? It’s strange that you keep a fertile under your care but aren’t using him for, it seems, anything.”

“The pleasures of being part of the idle rich,” Tim said.

“Indeed. Still, it is strange. I never understood why Bruce collected so many strays but didn’t use them.”

An insult. He was calling Tim a stray, trying to imply he wasn’t a real Wayne, that he didn’t deserve the inheritance. That was fine. Tim preferred insults. They meant Philip didn’t have any actual ammunition against him.

“Richard has never even been to competition has he?” Philip pushed when it became clear Tim wasn’t going to rise to the bait.

“Why would he? I don’t need money. I don’t intend to breed him. Why should he compete?”

“But surely status—”

His phone buzzed. Alfred was here. Good. “I’m not breeding Dick,” Tim said one more time, finished his drink in a single swig, and began to walk away.

“What about the omega?!”

Tim stopped.

“You want my butler?”

“No. The other omega. The _fertile_ omega.”

No one should know about Jason. He was still legally dead.

People were looking at them. Philip was smiling like he knew he’d just struck a chord. “If I can’t have Richard can I have the omega? I know you have one. Funny that they didn’t appear anywhere on the breakdown of Bruce’s estate. I do hope Bruce wasn’t doing anything… unnatural.”

Unnatural. By that he meant _sexual_. Betas were, typically, asexual. They were also sterile. This was why they were the masters of the household. Why they were the only caste that received a full education. Why they were the only ones that were legally speaking ‘people’. Their vision wasn’t impaired by hormones or the need to breed the way the fertile castes were. If a beta behaved a way a fertile did, if they displayed evidence of having a sex drive, their reputation would be ruined.

Not that Bruce ever cared about his reputation. Bruce was a sexual beta and he'd never attempted to hide it. Dumb and horny. A fertile in a beta’s body. Not someone anyone would suspect capable of being Batman.

None of that mattered. What mattered was Philip, an ordinary man, had somehow been able to find out Jason existed. If there was evidence of an undocumented omega in the household Tim could be charged with fraud. That was what Philip was threatening him with now. But it wasn’t what was hanging over his head in Tim’s mind. If he was charged with fraud the house might be searched… and that would put Batman at risk.

And that was unacceptable.

“There is no omega,” Tim told him. He turned and left.

On the street Alfred already had the car waiting, back sat door open. Tim climbed in.

“Is everything okay Master Timothy?”

Tim flinched. He hated the title. That was Bruce’s title. “Yes, Alfred. It’s fine. Take me home. I just need to sort something out."

*

Tim knocked on Jason’s door. No answer.

“Jason?”

Still nothing.

The light was on under the door.

Tim considered leaving him. He and Jason didn’t exactly have the best history. But Philip had found out about him somehow. That was a leak that couldn’t be left.

He turned the knob. It was locked. That didn’t matter. One of the advantages of being master of the house was he had a key that could open every lock on the property. Ten seconds later the door was open. The room beyond was dark and muggy, the curtains closed and the bed a mess. The bathroom door was open and the shower running.

Tim closed the door and walked toward the bathroom. He paused when he saw some clothes on the floor.

A pair of pants. A shirt. Another shirt…

In the bathroom he heard voices talking to each other. Low, familiar, and loving. He knew those voices.

Tim closed his eyes. _“Shit.”_

He left and locked the door. Made his way back to the cave.

He should have predicted this. Leave an alpha and an omega alone long enough and it was only natural they follow their instincts. That was what he’d always been taught growing up. He had to manage the alphas and the omegas, be kind to them, but also be aware of their needs and instincts. If you didn’t want babies in the household then keep them separate. Or, at the very least, medicated.

He sat down at his work table. Either way, this was an issue that needed to be addressed.

*

“What the fuck?” Jason ripped off his hood. “What are you doing here, Replacement?”

“Watching you.”

“Yeah. Okay. I can fucking see that. This was meant to be a gang hideout.”

“It was. I found your investigation files. You keep them neater than Dick does.”

“You hacked into my computer,” Jason concluded. “Of course you did. _Fuck_. At least tell me you killed the mother fucker that was leading this thing.”

“He’s in police custody.”

“Of fucking course.” Jason slammed the door. “You don’t come into the field for a fucking year and when you do it’s just to mess with me.”

“I wanted to talk to you without someone listening.”

“Oh really? I call bullshit. You’ve been trying to bring back the dead for months. Why would you leave your hole just to talk to me? We’re not friends, Replacement, and I sure as fuck don’t have any information you want.”

“B isn’t dead.”

“It’s been a year, Replacement. I think it’s time for you to move past the denial and onto—”

“How long has Dick been fucking you?” He wouldn’t normally use real names when they were in costume, but he knew they were safe here. He’d dispatched the gang members, cleaned up, and had enough time to check for bugs before Red Hood finally managed to piece together the evidence that would lead him here.

“Son of a bitch,” Jason muttered. “That’s none of your business.”

“Actually, it is.”

“Fuck you. You think a piece of paper makes you our master? No. I’m dead. No one owns me but me. And Dick? He’s the one that _actually_ took charge and held this family together when Bruce died. He’s the real leader. You? You’ve had your head so far up your own arse for a year you’re only just now realising that, yeah, Dick and I are together, and there is nothing you can—”

“Have you told him you’re pregnant?”

Jason went very still.

Tim waited, studied him. Defensive… but not shocked. Interesting.

Finally… “I’m not pregnant.”

“Don’t lie to me.”

“I’m not ly—”

“I tested you.”

Jason stared at him. “You… _what?”_

Tim didn’t move. He was sitting on the table, legs dangling, wearing his Red Robin uniform. It was uncomfortable after a year of being on the shelf but he didn’t want Jason to see that. “Judging from your reaction you already knew. I’m guessing you took a pregnancy test and threw it away in the trash.”

“So what if I did?”

That was how Phillip had found out. He was going through their rubbish. Classy.

“Are you keeping it?” Tim asked.

“I don’t know. You’re the beta. Isn’t that up to you?”

“A second ago you told me you were free, that no one owned you.”

“No,” Jason said through gritted teeth. “I’m not keeping it.”

Tim nodded. “Okay. Do you want help?”

Jason didn’t respond. His lips were thin, shoulders tight. He looked like he expected to be attacked at any moment.

“I can make a fake identity for you,” Tim told him. “I can make you legally mine. That way you can get a legal abortion which, I imagine, would be much safer. I can also legally mate you to Dick… if that’s what you want.”

“You…” some of the tension edged out of his shoulders. “Would do that?”

“If that’s what you want.”

“Why?”

“Because it’s safer for us, as a family, if you’re legal. If you’d rather stay dead then that’s fine but, for the love of God, don’t throw any more pregnancy tests in the rubbish.”

A long pause. A very long pause. A pause so long it could probably be reclassified as a silence. “If I say yes…” Jason said slowly. “You won’t ever try to sell me off or anything fucked up like that, right?”

Tim almost laughed. It was a strange sensation. He hadn’t laughed in a long time. “No. And even if I did, who would buy you?”

Jason snorted. “Arse.”

But it didn’t matter because there was no hostility in that word. They both knew that what they said wasn’t what they meant. Because Jason was a beautiful omega. A lot of people would pay an awful lot for him. But Tim wouldn’t sell Jason because Jason wasn’t for fucking sale. Why the fuck would he be? He’s family. Other betas might treat fertiles like property but Bruce never had, and Tim wouldn’t either.

“I’ll think about it,” Jason said. “But… eh… don’t tell Dick… okay? Whatever the fuck I decide. I don’t want him to know about… it. Okay?”

Tim nodded. That was fair.

Another long silence.

“Hey, thanks for not freaking out,” Jason said. “If B was the one to find out he’d probably lock us up in different towers and put me on meds.”

“I think contraceptives might be a good idea, actually.”

Jason croaked out a laugh. “Yeah. No shit. Only it’s kinda hard for us fertiles you know. Dick was putting on beta perfume and got a fake ID to buy condoms. We were going to try to fake some papers and go to the doctors, him the beta, me the omega, but… well…”

“I can get you contraceptives.”

“Shit. Shit.” Jason was shaking his head. “You’re just offering that and… shit. You have no fucking idea. No… this last year. It’s been a hell of a year, Tim. And you… you weren’t there and…”

Tim felt the guilt then. Slow, creeping, but undeniable. He’d never realised how much he’d withdrawn from the family, or how vulnerable they might be without a beta there to help them bypass all this bullshit. He thought about the way Dick had spoken to him in the cave. Soft, gentle, but persistent. He hadn’t expected much from Tim. And why should he? Tim hadn’t done anything for them.

“I’m sorry.”

“No. Shit. Don’t say that,” Jason swore. “That wasn’t what I meant to say. No one blames you. You’re a kid. But… shit.” He looked down. “Look. I… I’ll think about the whole becoming legal thing, Replacement, but I’m not going to make any promises. I kinda like my freedom, you know.”

“I get that.”

“Yeah… anyway.” He put his hood back on. “See ya.” Without another word he turned and strode back out the door. Tim watched him go. He didn’t move for a long time. When he did he was slow and strangely tired. He should go back to the cave, look over the evidence some more. He was close… so close to figuring out what happened to Bruce that day. Instead he went to a safe house and slept.

*

It was surprisingly easy creating a fake identity for Jason. In fact, with a little help from Cyborg, his new identity had more credibility than his old one. He put together a fake purchase agreement, paid a huge amount of tax on it… and just like that Jason was a part of the household in the eyes of the law. It was a move that wouldn’t be scrutinised too much. They were a wealthy family with an unmated alpha. It wasn’t abnormal for someone in his position to find an omega with good genes but no family ties.

The abortion was a little harder to organise… he didn’t want to break his promise to Jason so he had to keep it hidden from Dick… and Dick wasn’t an idiot. It wouldn’t take much for him to realise something was going on. But even Batman was foolable, with a little help from Alfred. They had the procedure when Dick was with the Justice League and Jason stayed in a safe house while he recovered.

“What’s going on?” Dick asked a few weeks later when Tim approached him with the papers.

“Would you like to mate, Jason?”

Dick’s eyes went wide. “W-what?”

“I was planning on mating you two, unless you have any objections.”

“I… why would you think…?”

“Are you going to pretend the two of you are not together?”

Dick’s cheeks were quickly turning red. “I… I… you can’t. Jason’s legally dead.”

He showed him the first paper. Jason’s new identity.

“I… Tim this is…”

“It’s already done. He has expressed interest in a formal mating. Are you interested?”

“I…Tim? What the actual fuck is happening right now? Am I dreaming?”

“Are you interested?” Tim asked again.

Dick didn’t say anything. He just looked at Alfred, watching on with amusement, and nodded.

A month later they were mated. Alphas and omegas didn’t get weddings like betas did. There was no suits, cake, music, or rose petals raining down from the ceiling. It was just a letter that arrived by standard post. But, Tim had a feeling Dick and Jason didn’t care. He watched them that night, letter in hand, running across the lawn, laughing, hugging, kissing.

“That was a kind thing you did,” Alfred said.

Tim took the tea he offered but didn’t say anything, just watched Dick and Jason, still kissing, deeper this time. Growing up he’d always been told that alphas and omegas, the fertiles, weren’t as wise or rational as betas. They were missing that part of themselves, that’s what his teachers always said. But, looking at the joy in their faces, looking at the way they grabbed each other, held each other, Tim couldn’t help but feel he was the one missing something.

He shouldn’t be here, watching this. He should be focusing on Bruce’s disappearance. He was close. He knew he was close. He’d proved there was a type of energy at the scene which didn’t belong to any tech identified on the scene. He just needed to find the source of it. Then he’d know what happened to Bruce.

But maybe he could stay here a little longer with Alfred, looking over the gardens and the couple wrapped in each other’s arms.

“It wasn’t kind,” he said after a while. “It was right.”

Alfred was studying him. “Indeed, sir.”

*

Superman was in the cave. Tim blinked and rubbed his eyes. Was he dreaming? No. Superman was there, at his workbench, looking over his evidence with bright interested eyes.

“Hello?”

Superman turned, bowed his head quickly, an alpha acknowledging a beta, and gestured at the evidence. "Did you do this?”

“Yes. Um. I’ve been trying to figure out…” Why was he telling him this? “W-what can I help you with, Superman?”

“I came because I found some Kryptonite. Bruce used to store it for me. I saw this.”

“Oh. Okay. Um. I’m sure we can find some room in the safe for some more K. You should probably talk to Dick about—”

“He’s alive.”

Tim stopped breathing for a second. No, he couldn’t be talking about…

“Bruce,” Superman said. “You’ve done it. You’ve proved he’s alive. He wasn’t killed by Darkseid.”

“I… how…?”

“He escaped through a time portal.” Superman said. “I don’t know how he did it, that mad genius, but he did. All this fourth dimension energy... He must have found a way to harness it to escape through time… how did you know to put all these pieces together?”

Tim was shaking. He didn’t know if he was feeling hot or cold or both at once. “I just… I didn’t think he was dead. I gathered all the evidence I could. That was what didn’t make sense. I didn’t know what that energy was but…” He trailed off.

Superman was smiling at him. Smiling at him as if he were the hero.

It took seven weeks for the Justice League to find Bruce. They traced the energy back to the stone ages and then followed another signal into the future, because of course Bruce wouldn’t make it too easy.

“About time,” Bruce said when they found him. Tim didn’t know what he was complaining about. He’d only been waiting for four minutes.

The weeks that followed were strange. Bruce came back to the manor, slightly annoyed to find he’d been declared dead, but quick to think up an elaborate excuse for his return. It wasn’t the first time the eccentric billionaire had disappeared for years at a time after all. Tim happily surrendered all his inheritance… except one thing.

Jason. Jason, under his new identity, had never been Bruce’s property.

Tim considered handing him over. After all, it was strange for a household to be split between two betas that weren’t married. When he’d brought this up to Jason the glare he’d gotten had been absolutely murderous.

“Don’t you _dare_ give that arsehole my docs. You hear? _You’re_ my beta.”

“But he’ll be better. He’ll know how to take care of you. I don’t do anything.”

“Okay, first thing, I don’t need taking care of. I’m a fucking adult. Second, bullshit he’s a better beta than you. In case you didn’t notice, I died on his watch. When you were in charge I got hitched to the love of my fucking life. And _thirdly_ , you do do shit, you helped me more than anyone has ever helped me, just because you could, which makes you _the_ best fucking beta, so shut the fuck up.”

It wasn’t a speech he felt compelled to argue with. “I’m glad you’re happy with Dick,” was all he said.

Jason peered at him. “Wait. Hold the fuck up. What’s that?”

“What’s what?”

“That tone. You’re upset.”

“No I’m not I’m just… tired.” And it was true. He hadn’t realised how tired he was until that moment. “I guess these last couple of years have just been… like… I don’t know. Trying to find Bruce, and deal with Philip, and…”

“Who the fuck is Philip?”

“Just a beta. It’s okay. You don’t need to know.”

“Wait. I remember. He’s the guy that was trying to get the house, right? Yeah. Dick was using Bruce’s email for a while when he was gone. He told me about him.”

Tim didn't know Dick had been doing that. Most alphas and omegas couldn't even read, let alone use a computer. But, then again, Bruce hadn't seen the use in an illiterate Robin. It didn't surprise Tim that he'd made sure they had a beta worthy education. “He didn’t want the house.” Tim said. “I mean, actually, yes, he does want the house. But that’s not what he asked me for.”

“What did he ask you for?”

“It doesn’t matter. Beta business.”

“Hey no.” Jason grabbed his chin, which in some households would have earnt him a brutal beating, and turned Tim’s face towards him. “Don’t just shut me out like that. I’m not a beta so I can’t go to any of those fancy parties or business meetings, thank fucking God, but I can still help if you’re stressed. Tell me about this guy. I’ll give you a solution.”

“He’s an arsehole.”

“Okay. Kill him.”

Tim coughed out a laugh. “Jason… He’s Bruce’s uncle.”

“So? Kill him.”

“He wanted to breed Dick with one of his omegas.”

Jason’s eyes instantly darkened. “Kill him,” he said again, voice deadly serious.

Tim laughed some more. “I told him to fuck off. I… I hate being a beta. I hate having to deal with this shit.”

“Would you rather be a fertile?”

“I mean… You don’t have to do any of this business stuff, trying to figure out who out of all the smiling people in suits is screwing you over, looking out for everyone in the household.” He thought about Dick and Jason holding each other in the gardens. Faces close and bodies closer. “And… I don’t know… sometimes it just seems… nice.”

“Alphas and omegas have to have sex,” Jason reminded him.

Tim made a face. “Yeah. That’s a downside.”

Jason smirked. “Yeah. I think nature probably knew what she was doing when she made you a beta. But, hey, I get it. It’s fucked up. This whole world is fucked up. I’m a slave. No one cares. Except you do a bit.” Jason’s eyes were a dark steady blue. “I know the last few years it’s been shit. But, I think, when Bruce dies for real, you’ll be ready this time.”

“Really?”

“Yeah,” Jason pulled him roughly into his side. A one armed hug. And that… that was strange. Betas didn’t hug each other. Handshakes were pretty much the closest he’d come to another person in… years. It had to have been years. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been hugged. Inexplicably it made him want to cry.

He fought it back. “Thanks, Jay.”

Jason was right. It was fucked up. Everything was fucked up. But he had a job to do. He had to protect and care for the household. And, he silently swore, he would never let them down again.


End file.
